The Tale of a Ninja Mermaid
by sesshoumaru12
Summary: Orochimaru has once again slithered his way into Konoha, his main goal is to find a suitable Kunoichi for his next experiment. Sakura's day is about to get a lot wetter.. and neither Tsunade nor Naruto is happy with her disappearance and then sudden reappearance.
1. A Snake Hidden in the Leaves

Title: The Tale of a Ninja Mermaid.

Chapter One: A Snake Hidden in the Leaves and a Captured Cherry Blossom

_**SAKURA, SAKURA, SAKURA, SAKURA, SAKURA, SAKURA, SAKURA, SAKURA, **_

I was not happy at all. I had just finished my second shift at the hospital and was finally walking home. This normally would have been okay, except for the fact that I had gotten soaked by a busted pipeline in the hospital. I was also drained of chakra from an extensive surgery on an ANBU team that had just come in from a rigorous mission in the hidden grass village. They had been poisoned and the antidote had to be administered five times before it finally started to work; all together it took twenty five vials for all four patients. And on top of that they suffered massive internal injuries to almost every internal organ so both Shizune and Tsunade had to be called in as well as myself.

"SAKURA-CHAN!" I was broken from my line of thoughts as Naruto came bounding into my line of view. I smiled a tired smile and accepted his hug.

"What's up Naruto?" I asked. He stepped back and smiled.

"Just wanted to see if you'd come to Ichiraku's with me?" I sighed and thought about what I had at home. Nothing, nothing at all. At that point, right as I was about to decline my stomach piped up and growled. I quickly shut my mouth and blushed furiously. Naruto's smile grew a little and his eyes warmed as he took my hand and led my towards his favorite ramen shop.

"I'll pay this time Sakura-chan." His voice was serious and I almost couldn't believe it.

"Thank you Naruto." I leaned a little more on his shoulder.

"Lean any closer and People will think I'm cheating on Hinata with you." He chuckled. I rolled my eyes and couldn't help the small smile that came to my lips.

"Please, like that could ever happen, little Akira wouldn't like auntie Sakura to have grown up play time with daddy!" I said laughing. Naruto's face went scarlet and I smiled even more. Akira was Hinata and Naruto's daughter and she had accidentally walked in on Naruto and Hinata having 'Grown up play time' he had been royally embarrassed and I couldn't blame him, anyone would have been embarrassed.

"Shut up.." His blush was slowly dying as we walked into Ichiraku's. We sat down at the front bar and placed a double order of beef ramen.

"So how is little Akira?" I asked. He sobered up quickly.

"She's a little sick but she'll be okay." My smile dropped.

"Do you want me to come by and look at her?" I asked.

"Actually that's what Hinata sent me to find you for." He said looking rather sheepish. I smiled and we finished out ramen in silence.

"Listen I'm exhausted, is she in serious condition or can she wait till early tomorrow morning?" I asked his face sank a little.

"She's running a 102 fever." He said and my eyes bugged.

"YOU BAKA! WHY DIDN'T YOU TELL ME THAT TO BEGIN WITH?!" I shouted, with that I grabbed him by the ear and started dragging him towards the Uzumaki compound. I was exhausted and drained but Akira was well worth my time and energy. I'd do just about anything for her.

**. 2 hours later .**

I drug myself home, fully exhausted and fully drained and just on the edge of collapsing. I had next to no chakra, and I was planning to just go home and collapse in bed, I knew I didn't have work tomorrow and it was a damn good thing because I would need at least one full day to recover one half of my reserves. I could just see the edge of the roof of my house when a shadow fell over me. _'Oh hell, what now?!' _I thought.

"Look, I don't know who you are and I really don't care, but if you mess with me both Tsunade and I will beat your ass!" I called the threat of myself was intimidating but the Threat of Tsunade was worse! Whoever it was started to chuckle. _'Okay so someone obviously isn't very bright.' _

"Tsunade-hime won't be much of a threat once the treated alcohol hits her system. As for you, you have next to no chakra and on the edge of collapsing." The sharp hissing s's made Orochimaru an obvious man, and true to form Kabuto was found right beside his master ever more pushing his glasses up and into place.

"Resistance would not be wise Haruno-san." Ever formal, Kabuto always knew how to state the obvious. I smirked and focused a small amount of chakra into my fist. I knew it was a waist of an effort and chakra, but it still beat being caught by those two. Kabuto ran at me I jumped past him and ran straight for Orochimaru, if he was injured hopefully whatever they were planning wouldn't be carried through with. I managed to land a punch square to his jaw and smirked until that is his fist connected with my stomach and Kabuto hit a pressure point in my neck. I fought it as hard as I could but the black dots grew into a solid black abyss as Kabuto injected me with some sort of serum.

"Good job, now let's get her back to the lab for experiments." Orochimaru's voice was the last thing I heard as I finally succumbed to sleep.


	2. Tail Fins

Title: Tale of A Ninja Mermaid

Chapter 2: Tail Fins

Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto, if I did a few things would be different.

'_thoughts' __**'inner Sakura' **_

**Beep… Beep… Beep… Beep… **I hated the sounds of hospital machines.

**Beep… Beep… Beep…Beep… Beep… **I also hated waking up on cold, hard, metal tables.

My eyes slowly opened, and just as quickly I slammed them shut. Bright light was an understatement to what was currently shining down onto my eyes.

"Oh it's not that bad Sakura-chan." That voice made me shiver and my eyes opened. After adjusting to the lighting I noticed a water tank in the corner of the room with various other machines hooked up to it, and Kabuto stood slightly over me on my right side. He looked at a monitor to my left quickly jotting down some notes. He walked over to a nearby desk setting down the clip board and then returning.

"This may hurt a little." He said before starting to remove the needles and various other things that had been placed into my arms. I grit my teeth as the sixth and final one came out.

"What's with all these machines?" I asked, my throat was suddenly parched as he handed me a glass of water.

"Just a few tests to see if you can withstand Orochimaru's gift." He said with a slight smile. I frowned and was about to retort something snarky when he started to talk again.

"Your chakra has been temporarily cut off, you can't move very much because I've bound you to the table, and before we go see Orochimaru-sama, I'll be binding you with chakra strings so you can't escape. And before we let you go you'll be getting a curse mark seal." With that he injected something into my arm and my traitorous muscles slowly started to relax and the next thing I knew I was in the pitch black again.

_**KABUTO , KABUTO , KABUTO , KABUTO , KABUTO , KABUTO , KABUTO , KABUTO ,**_

I knocked her out shortly after informing her of what was to be done. I bound her in chakra ropes and carried her to Orochimaru-sama's room. While he gave her his gifts I went to retrieve the water tank. I was just about to enter the lab to retrieve the tank when I heard her screams. He had started giving her his gift.

"Please live." I whispered before kicking the door stand down. I quickly retrieved the tank and returned to Orochimaru's room. Another scream came from the other side of the door and I sighed as I pushed it open and then pushed the tank to a nearby corner of the room while waiting for him to finish. The last scream finally died off her lips and she slumped to the ground. At this point a couple of things could happen. Her body could accept what had happened and the changes that would happen, or her body could reject it and the seal would kill her.

"Take her away, make sure she eats and survives and then return her." He hissed turning away from her. I picked her up wiping away some of the blood from her wrists and back and forehead. After she was slightly cleaned I let her body slide into the tank. She started to choke but her lungs quickly readjusted to the liquid water. Her eyes opened for a moment to stare at me before they slid closed and she slept.

"Yes sire." with that I wheeled her back to the lab to await her awakening.

_**SAKURA , SAKURA , SAKURA , SAKURA , SAKURA , SAKURA , SAKURA , SAKURA,**_

I was thankful for the sleep after what had happened. Orochimaru bit me on the wrists, back and forehead. He had told me that I was powerless to stop him and if I tried to stop him, he would set a full on attack on Konoha and especially Naruto. I refused to be the reason Naruto was attacked, I could never forgive myself especially now that he had a family with Hinata. I had bowed my head and waited, but it wasn't long before his disgusting fangs slid in and out of my skin multiple times and places. I had screamed myself raw and was thankful for the black abyss that was sleep.

_**X DREAM X**_

My dream scape shifted from a pure black nothingness and I stood in a field next to a pond. I sighed, picked up a rock and skipped it across the water of the pond.

"That's rude. You almost hit me." I jumped at the sound of the voice and looked down into the water as a head surfaced from the lake.

"Who are you?" I asked she had beautiful pink hair and jade green eyes. She smiled and as a massive tailfin came up out of the water I noticed for the first time something odd. She was half fish and half human. She was a mermaid.

"Rather what are you?" I asked backing up, I ran into a giant boulder and slid down it till my butt hit the ground. Her laugh was light and lyrical and I was envious.

"Oh dear, you haven't realized yet have you?" she giggled and I could only shake my head not understanding.

"I am you. If you close your eyes and relax you'll see through my eyes. I am the future you, I am here to tell you that you mustn't fight the curse seal or it will kill you. Your powers will multiply and I'll teach you new things." I nodded dumbfounded and when I closed my eyes and finally relaxed. I felt the warm water lapping at my jade green tail, it had tiny pink spots. I moved it side to side and felt the power rippling in the muscles, suddenly I wanted to swim but I didn't move to scared to try. A tugging sensation brought me back to my own body and just like that I was opening my eyes and the older me was beginning to back away into the water.

"Sakura it's time to wake up now. If you live you'll be a ninja mermaid. And I'll help you master your new powers." But then she was gone and I was blacking out again.

_**X END DREAM X**_

I shifted and my eyes opened. Kabuto was looking at me like I'd grown a second head.

"WHAT?!" I snapped at him, it was bad enough that I had a head splitting headache, I didn't need this creep staring at me too.

"You transformed in your sleep and your still in your mermaid body." He breathed scribbling notes down furiously on that stupid clip board of his. I growled and banged my fist on the glass. I hit again and again and again, suddenly it started to crack and I pounded harder.

"Stop, stop that right now Sakura!" Kabuto shouted. Pressing a button on the side of the tank suddenly the water started to drain and I was left at the bottom off the tank. Suddenly the tank was too small my fins were pressed into the tank and my chest, I was struggling to breath and my scales began to burn.

"Kabuto! It burns! Please I need water." I begged but he turned away and the burning got worse and worse until I felt like I'd been dumped into a furnace feet first. I screamed and screamed and begged for water but none came. Steam began to rise up off my tail.

' _**Sakura, calm down. Your first transformation back into a human is very painful but the more you transform back and forth, the less it will hurt.'**_ Inner Sakura's voice was soothing and I tried to relax. She continued to whisper soothing nothings into my ear and I slowly relaxed and the pain finally receded. I looked down and sure enough my own legs were right there. The glass shattered and I climbed out. I made it to the bed where my clothes were and was about to try standing when I was injected with some kind of serum and the world went black yet again.

_**NARUTO , NARUTO , NARUTO , NARUTO , NARUTO , NARUTO , NARUTO , NARUTO , **_

"WHAT DO YOU MEAN MISSING?!" Tsunade shouted at me. I sighed for the millionth time and started again.

"She wasn't at her apartment this morning when I went to check on her and no one in the village or at the hospital has seen her since yesterday." I said starting to get irritated. Suddenly there was a knock on the door.

"Tsunade-sama, Kakashi said it's urgent." Shizune said through the door. Tsunade sighed.

"Send him in! and it'd best be something Important." Tsunade shouted. Before she had time to open her mouth for another complaint Kakashi came walking in the door carrying Sakura. She was injured severely and looked a bit thinner than she did a few days ago.


	3. Flat Line

Title: Tail of a Ninja Mermaid

Chapter 3: Recovery and Discovery

'_Thoughts' __**'Inner Sakura' **_"Talking"

_**XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX XX**_

Pacing back and forth outside of Sakura's hospital room did no good but, I couldn't face her yet. She had been abducted and hurt and I hadn't been there to protect her, but the worst part is that it was essentially my fault that she was taken. I had asked her to check on Akira, she had exhausted her chakra but insisted on going home and instead of going with her to make sure she made it safe… I had gone to bed and enjoyed a steamy night with Hinata. It was MY fault and I wasn't man enough to face the sister, the woman, I loved with all my heart but couldn't save. Because of me that snake bastard had sunk his fangs into her multiple times and multiple places and there was no telling what kind of effect it would have on her or our relationship. I could only hope she would forgive me for not being there for her. My fist tightened up and right as I was about to drive it into one of the walls Hinata walked out and placed her hand on my shoulder. Meeting her beautiful lavender eyes I found a dim shimmer of hope and I couldn't stop myself from hugging her close to me. She sighed and pulled back.

"Naruto, she's stable but, you should still go see her." She had long ago stopped stuttering thanks to Sakura and Kiba, but the last words out of her mouth may as well have been said from 30ft. below water.

"Hinata, I just can't. I can't face her knowing it's my fault." Tears were threatening to fall and I was doing everything I could to stop them from falling.

"You can't blame yourself forever Naruto, you had no way of knowing that snake was in the village or even that he was targeting Sakura-chan." Her words held wisdom but they couldn't ease the pain on my heart.

"Naruto, stop wallowing in self-pity and go see her already!" Ino's voice was shocking but I was glad that one of Sakura's closest friends was here as well. Turning around to face her directly her smile was what startled me the most.

"Besides, you can go and see her with me since I'm going in right now." Had her hair been down like it normally was, she would have flipped it over her shoulder at that point. However her hair was up in a tight bun and she wore a light yellow sun dress with a white flower pattern and white flats. In her hands she held a yellow vase full of pink and yellow flowers, the name of which I would never remember.

"Perfect idea Ino!" was Hinata's bright reply and I could only whirl around to look at her as if she too had gone crazy. I stood dumbfounded as Ino pranced up, linked arms with me, and handed me the vase of flowers. Hinata planted a soft kiss on my cheek, said she was off to get Akira and then fished my wallet out of my pocket saying that they would be shopping for a 'get well soon/ thank you' gift for Sakura, and then she was gone.

"Well come on Naruto, she's not getting any younger, and neither are we." Ino's cheery voice had me moving and as much as I wanted to shove the vase at her and make a break for it but, I knew I couldn't and even if I did, I probably wouldn't make it that far. She pushed the door open and my heart was pounding faster with each second.

"Sakura, I hope you like these flowers." Ino was quiet as we walked in and I quickly turned my back to them to close the door. I waited and waited for Sakura to reply but she never did so I took one final breath, slowly let go of the handle and turned to face her.

"Bring me the flowers Naruto, they need a lot of sun light so we'll have to sit them here on the window sill." Ino's voice disappeared as I caught sight of Sakura. She was very pale and sick looking. They had wrapped her wrists, back, forehead, and eyes in bandages. There were various machines hooked up to her which would have to be removed before she woke up or she would probably injure herself trying to remove them out of impatience. Her chest struggled to move with every breath she took, and she laid stiller than death its self. Hot tears fell from my eyes before I could stop them and I was thankful Ino had sense enough to take the vase of flowers from me right before I fell to my knees. My hands balled up into fists and I was even angrier with myself for having betrayed her like I did.

"Please forgive me Sakura." It was the only thing I could manage to choke out and I knew I would never deserve it, not from her. I cried harder but when the heart monitor flat lined I was forced out of the room with a shouting Ino who was demanding she be given a checkup report on her fiend every hour on the hour. Weather or not her request was acknowledged was unknown, I didn't particularly care anymore, my best friend's heart had just stopped and I hadn't even apologized to her face.

"How'd it go Ino?" Hinata's voice was a blessing and I clung to her blurry shape and cried for a moment.

"Naruto? Ino, What happened in there?" Hinata didn't sound happy as she ran her hands through my hair and I just wished I could restart the day in a different way.

"Sakura's heart monitor, it flat lined." I could barely hear Ino, but I heard Tsunade loud and clear when she said she wanted Ino and I in her office.


	4. Waking up

Title: The Tale of A Ninja Mermaid

Chapter Four: Waking up

"Talking" _'Thinking' __**'Inner Sakura' **__**'Mermaid Sakura. thoughts only' **__**"Mental Communication"**_

_**XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX XX**_

Everything was so loud and white. _'What's Going on?' __**'Well technically we died.'**__** 'We did not! Quit being such a drama queen!'**_ all at once my head was filled with my voice, inner Sakura, and the Mermaid Sakura. _'Guys, as nice as it is to hear from you all, please quiet down. I've got a major head ache.' _I was on the verge of tears by now. _**'Sorry, forgot how small the space is.' **__'It's okay. Now what the heck has been going on? What's this about dieing?' __**'Our heart stopped when your body made the final transformation. In a few days we'll need to get far away from all civilization so that you can transform into your mermaid body. The longer we wait the harder and more painful it will be to sift forms.' **_The mermaid part of me was very logical, and took her time explaining things so that I wouldn't get confused. _'oh.'_ With that the door opened and in walked Tsunade. I had already managed to sit up and I could only assume inner or the other me managed to take over and move me while we were all conversing.

"Sakura!" Tsunade was hugging me before I could take a single breath and I did my best to hug her back given her humongous boobs were in the way.

"Hi Tsunade-sama." I smiled weakly and tried my best to hide the slight pain I was feeling from her.

"How are you feeling? Do you need any pain medications? Oh Sakura! Everyone has been so worried!" she was gushing and sounding more the my mother than the Hokage, but I wasn't complaining.

"I'm okay. No I don't need them. And I'm okay now so everyone can stop worrying." I smiled and tried my best to look as physically convincing as possible. She sighed, and drug a chair over before she sat down and started looking over my charts.

"Hey Tsunade-sama?" I had to ask before I lost the nerve to.

"Yes Sakura?" She didn't look up, but I knew I had her full attention.

"Can I leave yet?" now she looked up. Her expression said 'Have-you-lost-your-damn-mind?!' she blinked a few times and then went back to checking the charts. A few minutes ticked by and she scribbled a few things down and then put the chart back at the end of my bed.

"Sakura, you just got back from being held hostage at Orochimaru's for a few days. I'm not sure being on your own is a good idea." Her eyes were begging me. I took a deep breath, counted down from ten, and sighed.

"Tsunade-sama, I want to go home. I hate being in hospitals, except while I'm working. All my vitals are back to normal. I have no serious injuries. There's no real reason for me to be here anymore." And she knew it more than anyone else. She sighed, head dropping.

"Fine. Shizune will bring you the papers in an hour." With that she stood and left silently out the door, something had her distracted. I noticed a small pile of clothes on the chair at the far end of the room with a small note card on top of it. Getting up, I easily detached myself from all the machines I was previously hooked up to. I swung my legs over the side of the bed and slowly lowered myself on to the cold tile floor of the hospital. Taking one slowly step at a time I eventually got to the chair with the clothes.

_Sakura, here are some clothes for when you finally get discharged._

_Naruto and I wanted to see if you were awake yet but you weren't,_

_So we'll wait for you at the flower shop. _

_You have some explaining to do!_

_Late forehead girl! _

_-Ino_

It was considerate enough but still I cringed at the thought of what Ino may or may not have brought me. I sighed and dressed without looking at what she brought, I would just trust her judgment this time.

_**XXXXXXXXXXXXXX TIME SKIP WITH INO AND NARUTO XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX**_

I sighed for the millionth time today. Naruto was pacing the shop relentlessly and business was slow as ever. Tsunade had sent a messenger bird with a note telling Naruto and I that Sakura had recovered and woken up and she was allowed to leave in an hour. That note had been sent almost an hour and five minutes ago. _'Tsunade said she'd tell Sakura we were here waiting on her, but what if she doesn't want to see us?'_ the thought was petrifying. The bell on the front door clanged to signal a new customer, I half expected it to be another civilian but the sight before me was no civilian! The door closed and the light faded to reveal Sakura looking all stunning in the clothes I had given her, not that she had much of a choice considering I took all other clothes besides the hospital gown she had been wearing.. Her hair was pinned up in a bun but there were a few strands that had come loose and fallen to frame her face. She didn't wear any make up but she really didn't need it. The black spandex shorts were snug and shower her hips perfectly. The red tank top was super tight and ended right under her breasts, showing off just how big they really are and how toned her stomach is. She was still wearing her Tsunade heels, which was something Tsunade herself required Sakura to wear every day to training.

"Ino, I'm going to strangle you." Were her first words, and her expression could easily kill.

"Oh Sakura!" Naruto latched onto her waist and started crying like no tomorrow. She smiled down at him and stroked his hair.

"Naruto, it's okay. I heard you earlier, you and Ino both. I'm glad to be back. It's not your fault, so don't even go whining about it being your fault." Sakura knew what was said? But she was supposed to have been out cold.

"Listen I have to go but I wanted to stop by and let you know I'm okay." By then Naruto had let her go and was standing to the side thinking of Kami knows what. Sakura turned and walked out without another word.


	5. Leaving and Kidnapped

Title: The Tale of a Ninja Mermaid.

Chapter Five: Leaving and Kidnapped

"Talking" _'Thinking' _ **'Inner Sakura'** _'Mermaid Sakura, thoughts only'_ _**"Mental Communication"**_

_**XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX SAKURA XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX**_

I left the flower shop quickly and as I was stepping out from the shop my legs started so tingle very lightly.

'_What's going on? Why are my legs tingling?' _**'I don't know!' **_**'You need to leave the Village as soon as possible and find that water source like I was talking about earlier! You're changing a lot sooner than predicted. It must be because of how close you were to the Kyuubi container. Hurry!' **_great just what I need. I started to sprint towards my house, by the time a made it my legs felt like they had pin ricks all up and down them. I hurriedly packed up about three days' worth of clothes as well as some personal supplies in a scroll and then I bolted for the door. I pushed chakra into my legs and pushed myself to go faster and faster. I needed to hurry my legs were starting to really burn. Thirty minutes and somewhere between Konoha and Suna, the mermaid side of me decided to pipe up.

'_**Up ahead is a warm lake. That would be perfect. We could stay there for the three days until the full moon passes.' **_She finished her sentence and what I saw ahead of me took my breath away. The lake had at least 3 miles from the center to the shore line in any given direction, and on the far end three different waterfalls fed the lake. Several trees were growing up along the waters' edge giving it perfect shade from some of the last of the sun's rays for the day. I smiled a real smile for the first time in a long time.

"wow, it's so beautiful." _**'Alright, strip down and get in. the sooner we get in the better.' **__'WHAT?! I can't strip here! What if someone sees?'_ _**'Um, hello? Were in a deserted forest!' **__'oh yeah.' _The mermaid part of me shakes her head and rubs her temples with her fingers. She obviously hasn't dealt with someone like me before. I steal a quick glance around before quickly stripping down, folding my clothes up and storing them in a hollow tree. I turn towards the lake and stare at it nervously. _'What do I do?' __**'Just walk along the shore until you find a place where there's a decent drop off point, and then quickly jump in. if you just wade in your tail will start to burn away from exposure. We must hurry! The sun us setting and travelers are headed in this direction.' **_I ran along the shore line, searching the water for a decent drop off point… THERE! I quickly jumped, not giving myself time to think.

_**XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX ITACHI AND KISAME XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX**_

Itachi was leaning against a tree with his eyes closed. He was trying to find something. _'But what?'___It was a passing though as he quickly stood up right, his eyes snapping open. They were their regular blazing red, they quickly locked onto me before moving to a westward direction.

"What is it?" I knew he most likely wouldn't answer, but it was worth a shot.

"Our target is that way." Simple, but to the point. We went in the direction he indicated.

"How far?" I was after all curious as to how long it would be before we could collect and get back to base.

"Two days." I sighed. There wouldn't be any stops either, he was just as ready to get back to base as I was. The only real question now, was how difficult it would be to grab the girl and run.

_**XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX SAKURA – NEXT DAY XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX**_

I awoke to something brushing against my arms.. Something hard and not that pleasant, groaning, I shifted away from the object just to shift onto what felt like sand. Sighing I tried to relax and rolling over something tickled my nose. I wriggled my nose, but a moment later the offending thing was back in full force. I grabbed it and yanked.

"OW!" I yelled quickly opening my eyes, sitting up, and noticing I was looking at my hair. _'Stupid long hair.'_ Was not the most dignified thought at the moment. Something brushing against my side brought my attention to the aquatic plant life around me as well as the abundant life in the lake. Looking down I noticed a small sucker fish looking up at me wide eyed. I smiled and waved.

"Hi there." My voice was oddly clear and surprisingly it didn't crack like I thought it would. It blinked and swam away.

"Don't go. I'm all alone here…" My voice wasn't much more than a whisper by the last word. Sighing I pushed my pink hair out of the way and slowly made my way through the pond. My tail was powerful, but luckily I had mostly gained control last night after about the third hour. It was excruciating for the first five minutes where my legs changed to fins and my lungs had to adjust to the liquid air. It hurt but it was all over now. I was still trying to get used to the power but with time the transitions would be easier and easier. I leaned left and headed towards the waterfalls. Looking around I notice a school of minnows a little further was a Dragon Sea Moth; he would be peaceful but I knew he was carnivorous, smiling I swam on. I stopped short beside a giant rock at a high sand bank so that a large shark closely followed by several blue, grey and silver Dart fish could pass by. I smiled and waved. The shark looked at me briefly before carrying on, however the Dart fish were much more polite. They swam to me, brushed against me lightly, then quickly caught up to their Sharkie friend. This was certainly an interesting community of fishes.

"Good morning." I called softly before pushing off the sand bank with my hands, barely swishing my tail so as not to scatter the sand too much. After passing a few more exotic fish types, I finally made it to the water fall. Pulling myself up, I sat on the rock below the falls and sat half under it with my head tilted back so that my hair would be thoroughly washed. Last nights' adventure was interesting but tonight would be the big problem. Tonight was the full moon and I knew I was more vulnerable than either inner, or the mermaid part of me really wanted to admit. I knew I was taking a huge risk leaving the village so soon after being taken, but it couldn't be helped. I couldn't risk exposing myself like that to the village, there was no telling what they would do to me if they knew. **'They would torture you and skin you alive and rip out your insides to see what makes you tick the way you do. You should know that better than anyone. All those prisoners you've had to heal after their torture sessions.. You don't wana end up like that. None of us do, so just be careful, keep your head down, and don't make a bigger fuss than necessary.' **Inner was being unusually calm, and opening my eyes I looked down at my hands. Sooner or later, someone else will come after me, especially if they find out what I am and what I turn into. It was just a simple logistical fact. Sighing I slowly slid down off the granite rock, back into the warm lake. It would be a long night and thankfully darkness was already setting in. I swam towards the western shore line, for some reason I just felt like going that way.

_**XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX TWO HOURS LATER XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX**_

I had made a wise decision. Along the shore line was a crevice just barely wide enough for my slender body to slide through. The tunnels had gotten smaller and smaller until I was sure I was going to be trapped, but an gold and black angel fish swam passed me with ease. Obviously there had to be another body of water in the direction it had come from. I pressed on, and with a final push at a particularly awkward angle, I found myself at the bottom of a huge pool of water in an underground cave. Swimming up a good 50 feet I reached the surface. The top of the cave had a small crack at the very far end to allow for air circulation. Moon light touched the sandy beach and a small crab scurried about looking for a last snack right before bed. Smiling I pulled myself up so that my upper body was out of the water, but my tail remained in the cool, hydrating water. Glancing up and back, I could just barely see the big moon in all her fullness. Smiling one last time my eyelids slammed closed and I knew nothing else.


	6. Sorry Guys

Title: Tale of A Ninja Mermaid

Chapter 6: Sorry guys.

_**XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX**_

Hello everyone!

Well I'd love to say the last chapter was a blast but quite frankly, it really wasn't. I'm not guna offer a sorry half-assed excuse either because that's not really fair to you guys. So instead I thought I'd take a moment to apologize for a crappy chapter, explain a few things and then give a few hints about what may be happening next chapter.

Okay so last chapter was kinda short and choppy. And sort of lacked detail. So let me take a second to expand on a few scenes. On the scene where she's swimming by all the various fishes (which are all real! You can google them… in fact that's how I found them….) I sort of imagined the scene from Nemo where he's going to school and pass all the exotic fishes and then instead of it being the eagle sting ray, I decided to have a shark swim past her. Then when she pushes off of the sand dunes I was thinking of The Little Mermaid where she pushes off from the bottom of the treasure trove and doesn't really bother the sand at all. Also I don't really know how to explain the tunnel thing.. that idea I got from a book I read that had a similar scene…..

Itachi and Kisame may or may not catch up with her… but I don't know yet weather or not I want to let them catch her all that easily. Seems too anticlimactic… I'm thinking I'm going to steal an idea from one of my reviewers (The Keeper of Worlds) and have 'Naruto go f-ing nuclear on Orochimaru' lol I just loved that review :3 I don't know if it was a request (which all of you are welcome to do) or a hope or prediction or what but be proud of yourself because now it may very well happen! :D

So now down ta the nitty gritty of what went wrong with last chapter.

I took too long.

It got stretched out because of spring break and a small family emergency

Major writers block…

So my goal is to not repeat those mistakes. Here are some solutions.

Spring break is over and emergency is past

I NEED/WANT SUGGESTIONS!

I'm back now so it should all get better again

Alrighty guys! My little authors note is pretty much done so lease review what you would like to see happen! Also thank you to my few other reviewers besides The Keeper or Worlds, but also thanks to the keeper I love to hear from all of you so keep at it and the next chapter should totally be up soon! Chaio!


	7. Escapes and Doorbells

Title: The Tale Of A Ninja Mermaid

Chapter 7: Escapes and Doorbells

"Talking" _'Thinking'_'Inner Sakura' _**'Mermaid Sakura, thoughts only'**__"Mental Communication"_

The heat was more intense than I remembered it being when I went to sleep. I cracked my eyes open and came face first to a cave ceiling and the smell of burning flesh. My lower half felt like it was on fire, and glancing down I realized why. Somehow during the night my entire body had shifted and my entire body was officially out of the water, smoke was starting to rise off my tail. I did a barrel roll to the left, towards water, and I swear it felt like my skin was falling off as it touched the sand and then! Sweet relief! I splashed into the water and allowed myself to sink towards the bottom. I hadn't sunk more than ten feet when I noticed an off shadow appear at the surface. I swam back under a set of hidden rocks on the far end of the cavern and waited, I could just barely hear what was being said from my position about two feet below the water.

"Come on Itachi, if we rest down here for a bit we'll have a good source of food, water, a good bathing spot, and shelter." The voice was easy to recognize, I slammed my hand down over my mouth to keep from gasping. I quickly hid my chakra and my presence as best as I could. I was scared, mostly, of Itachi. Kisame would hopefully be an even match but Itachi was a whole other ball game. A particularly blue set of bare feet descended into the water, five more feet would be the drop off. I pressed my back to the rock wall behind me knowing that the rock overhang would only do so much good if Kisame decided to come in for a dip.

'_Please, please don't come down here.' _I was pleading with whatever Kami was listening.

'**Were guna be stir fry come dinner time.' **Inner's comment wasn't helping the mini panic attack I was having and I really wanted to slap her silly.

'_YOUR NOT HELPING!' _I shouted back at her. She only shrugged, obviously she could care less. I sucked in a deep breath and was pleasantly surprised and quite giddy when those massive blue feet turned around and exited the water. I leaned forward a little to try getting a clearer view. Itachi and Kisame were setting up camp where I had been laying not so long before they came in. within minutes they had built a fire and done a parameter search and were sure everything was secured enough for the night. They turned their backs and were both facing the fire discussing something.

'_**NOW!' **_the mermaid side screamed and I darted towards the small entrance at the bottom of the cave. I wiggled my way through as quickly as I could without hurting myself I was almost out of the last little bit of the tunnel when my side scratched against a sharp edge I hadn't noticed before. Blood oozed out of my side and a strong current pressed against me in the direction I had just come from. I slowly forced my way against the current and tried to not catch anymore sharp edges. The tunnel started to open up and I smiled thrusting faster, I pushed myself as far as I could go in my current condition and soon enough I shot like a bullet out from the cavern entrance. The surrounding habitat and creatures were a blur, I had to make it to the far bank where I first got in or I was probably gonna be toast. I didn't have time to stop properly, not that I really knew how, so I curled in on myself and waited the two seconds it took to collide back first with the solid shore bank. I dropped to the lake floor and slowly relaxed as black spots clouded my vision, the pain finally started to recede from my back and within moments I was finally able to pull in a breath of oxygen. I laid there looking at the glittering starts, although slightly distorted from the rippling of the water. I hauled myself out onto the dry shore line and thanked Kami that the sun was just beginning to set. I looked down at my side and smiled as it slowly started to seal its self, I didn't even have to use chakra to help it along. My legs stung and slowly the scales evaporated to reveal long creamy legs. I sighed thankful that I had somehow managed to escape Akatsuki. I pulled my bag out of the hollowed out tree trunk and took out a pair of black spandex short, a red tank top and my black boots. My hair had grown drastically, to just below my breasts, so I made a makeshift hair tie with a senbon. I secured my forehead protector to my upper left arm and made sure to pull it extra tight so that it would be secure. I slung on my bag and began walking back towards the village when a heavy presence made it's self known to me.

"Now what is a pretty girl like you doing all the way out here by herself hm?" the voice it's self was deep and smooth. I turned to face the man, preparing to bolt at the slightest hint of danger. Arms wrapped themselves around me from behind and I shivered. "Oh? What's wrong? Don't you wana play a little first?" The man in front of me was older, had salt and pepper hair and stood a good two feet taller than me. I did a substitution and reappeared on a branch not far away. The man that had been holding me was well built, had blond hair and he looked agitated at my disappearance.

"Thank kami, that was way too close." With that I jumped a few trees and then jumped down to the forest floor before continuing on to the village.

_**HIDAN, HIDAN, HIDAN, HIDAN, HIDAN, HIDAN, HIDAN, HIDAN, HIDAN, HIDAN, **_

I was beyond agitated with the greedy fucker walking so happily along in front of me while counting his damn money. We were walking along toward base and the lazy bastard decided the quickest way would be to cut through fire country, so here we were about three hours past sunset walking about a mile and a half away from Konoha. I was trying to decide weather or not I wanted to rip out his guts and leave him or just get over it when I got blindsided. I hit the ground and both myself and whoever or whatever this thing was that ran into me went rolling along until we hit a tree, at which point I held on and the thing went sailing into a mound of dirt, rubble, and various forest debris. A huge dust cloud went up as I groaned and got to my feet, rubbing my head I looked over to Kakuzu. His eyebrow was raised and then he went back to counting his precious money.

"Greedy jerkwad." I mumbled as I stretched and waited for the last of the dust cloud to clear. I rubbed my eyes and had to wonder if Jashin-sama was toying with me when I spotted a long legged girl with bright pink hair that fell round her face in waves. I walked closer and she jumped to her feet quickly before stumbling a little bit and then leaning back on the woman shaped dirt imprint and clutched her head.

"HEY! Watch were your fucking going! I should sacrifice you to Jashin-sama!" I shouted at her. She just kept on holding her head, eventually she slid down and sat on the ground as if she was completely unaware of the danger she was in.

"HEY! I'M TALKING TO YOU!" I was practically in her face yelling from being so pissed off that she was ignoring me. her hand shot out and was wrapped around my throat. Her eyes flashed open and for a second I saw a beautiful emerald green, then they turned a deep silver. Her hair was flying around her, her grip tightened and various rocks and things started to fly around us. I gripped her hand and tried to get free but her grip only tightened and I could barely breath, not that I needed to, but it was nice. Suddenly a bright flash and she was gone.

_**SAKURA, SAKURA, SAKURA, SAKURA, SAKURA, SAKURA, SAKURA, SAKURA, **_

I woke up in my bed as sharp sunlight streamed in through my windows and groaned when I started to remember last night. I had bumped into two more Akatsuki, and something really odd happened. But the last thing I remembered before blacking out was seeing a silver haired man and some zombie looking guy. I was officially creepy out and just as I rolled over to try to forget things for a while..

My doorbell rang.


End file.
